Courting
by puppylove554
Summary: Taranee keeps on getting weird gifts from a secret admirer. However, when she gets to finally meet this person, something happens.


The first thing I noticed something weird was two days ago. My family was eating breakfast and my mother was leaving the house to head for work. Suddenly, we heard her scream. Peter and I rushed to the front door and we found our mother, backed against a wall pointing to a box full of snakes. Nevertheless, I fainted and Peter had to call animal control.

The second time something weird happened was that next day when the gang was hanging out at the Silver Dragon. My friends and I were hanging in the down in the basement when Hay Lin's mother came down and set down a box on the table. "Someone left a box for you Taranee," Hay Lin's mother said. Since I was still recovering from yesterday's surprise, I was not in the mood for anymore. So like the gentlemen he was forced to be, Caleb bravely opened the box while the rest of us hid behind the couch. "Woah," Caleb said and he held out the most beautiful amulet I have ever saw in my life. The bands were solid gold and in the middle, the stone was a black opal.

"Oh god, it's so beautiful," Hay Lin gasped. "Who sent it?" We searched high and low for a sign of a sender, but we couldn't find it. I touched the amulet and a bunch of strange markings showed up. I jumped and almost dropped it. "What are these?" I asked.

"Who cares," Cornelia remarked. "All we know is that Taranee has a secret admirer."

"Who has money~," Irma joked.

"Wait a minute," Caleb said. "I know where these symbols are from. This is Meridian."

"Well, what does it say," Taranee asked, giving Caleb the necklace. He studied the necklace for a while. The tension was killing me.

"It says: This amulet protects said wearer from all evil," Caleb said. "That's weird."

"I'll bet you it's the same person who sent those snakes yesterday," I replied. "Probably as some sick joke.

"You're about half correct, Taranee," said Yan Lin, coming out of nowhere. She is really good at doing that. "It's apart of an ancient courtship ritual."

"Courtship?" Will said. "Like flirting?"

"Yes, Will. You can call it that," Yan lin replied.

"I didn't know the ancients thought snakes were charming," Taranee said.

"The snakes are supposed to signify fertility. It's to show off how potent the sender is," Yan Lin said. I felt my cheeks heat up. I'm still in high school and apparently someone wants to make babies with me. I unconsciously clutched my stomach. It was a bit unnerving.

"Relax, Taranee," Yan Lin said. "It just means that said person is great person in bed."

"Grandma!" Hay Lin said. Steam started to fog my glasses up.

"So what about the necklace," I said, wanting to quickly change the subject. "Doesn't it show that he wants to protect me from any harm?"

"Kinda, the words get mixed up in translation," Yan Lin said. "It means that it would protect you from any unwanted suitors."

"So it's like a boy-be-gone amulet," Irma said.

"Quite literally,"Yan Lin replied. "If there are any boys that tries to make a move on the wearer, they will surely be gone for the amulet would electrocute them." Caleb practically threw the amulet back in the box at that statement.

"This person is the real deal," Irma said.

"I just want things to turn back to normal. Is there a way for you know to get this person to back off?" I said. This was getting a little to crazy for me to handle, and I want it to stop. Right now.

"I'm sorry Taranee," Yan Lin said."But you're going to have with this by yourself. If anyone interferes, things can get messy." I looked down in despair. Things couldn't get an worse.

Oh but it did. This time in my bedroom. A nice black box tied with a satin, red bow was lying at the foot of my bed. It was 3 in the morning and I absentmindedly opened the box. I was not prepared for what I saw. Not at all.

The decapitated head of a monster was inside of the box. I was to terrified to scream and only could kick the box in horror. The head rolled out of the box along with a piece of paper. It was covered in monster blood. Fortunately, it was still legible and in English:

Meet me at the abandoned railroads at 6. Come alone.

-S.A.

I know what Hay Lin's grandmother said, but I called my friends to have them stand by just in case. All throughout the school day. My friends and I were real tense, I didn't pay attention to any of my classes and Irma's reassuring jokes were falling flat.

Six o'clock came too soon, and my friends walked me as far as the start of the railroads. It felt like butterflies were fluttering around in my stomach. What if this is a trap? I walked slowly up the tracks, constantly looking around for any modes of escape if something goes 's when I felt a gigantic hand grab me from behind, covering my mouth.

How did I not notice this person? A pang of fear coursed through me and muffled sounds filled the air as I tried to scream and fight for help. However, this unknown figure was much bigger than me and I was so weak in my human form. That's when I felt a hand pressed against my neck, an unknown feeling coursed through me and I my world slowly faded to black.

I feel like I am floating on a cloud. Like a nice, fluffy cloud. This is what the first few seconds after I woke up feels like. But my memory soon crashed down on me and the bed didn't feel like a cloud, it was suffocating me. My eyes flew open and I rocketed up from what I was sleeping on. I was on some type of bedroom, and it was extravagant. It was half the size of my house. Beautiful but grotesque tapestry hung from the walls, trying to cover up it's stone grey color. A gigantic walk-in closet stood off to the left side of the room, judging by the size it could clothe all of Meridian for a year. The rest of the room had other types of luxuries like a couch that sat in front of a dead fireplace, beside it there was a bookshelf that hit the ceiling and covered a huge portion of the room was filled with books and other trinkets which were probably dark magic, a huge chandelier hung in the middle of the ceiling right under a bearskin rug, and the bed which could probably fit five people and have some room leftover was right in the center of it all. The bed, oh the bed. It was a canopy bed that had black curtains hung all around it. The bed frame was hand carved oak wood. Five mattresses laid on top of each other, deep red satin sheets covered the bed along with a heavy blanket that surrounded my body. I think the pillows have real feathers in them. It was a room fit for royalty. Medieval royalty at the very least. That's when it clicked. Fear boiled in my stomach as I realized I was in the castle.

I leaped down from the bed and felt the plush fur hit my bare feet. Why am I here? What am I doing here? Where are my shoes? I could hear my short, panicked breathing as I started to hyperventilate. Unfortunately, the room had no windows so I can't see where I am to properly formulate an escape plan. I paced around frantically. I can't just walk out the door, there are sure to be guards waiting for me. What are they going to do me? I paused and took deep breaths. Relax, Taranee, things will be okay. You can't panic, panic leads to bad decisions, remember your 3rd grade piano recital. Once my breathing got to it's normal pace, I looked up to find myself staring at my reflection in a mirror. I looked different. My jeans and t-shirt was replaced with a light blue gown, and my hair was put up in ringlets. I grasped my hair in shock. Is this some kind of joke?

All of a sudden I heard footsteps nearing the door. In a heartbeat, I jumped back on the bed, feigning sleep. The door slowly crept open, and two sets of feet stepped into the room. I felt my heart pounding in my chest as they came closer to me. I dared to take a peek.

Phobos and Elyon were standing over me, staring at my 'sleeping' form. She looked at me with a faced of wonderment, which only made me want take her and run away, while Phobos looked at me with a face I couldn't describe.

"Why did you bring her here?" Elyon asked. "We're not really on the best of terms."

"She's here to change all that Elyon," Phobos said with a sickly sweet tone. Fake bastard.

"How?"

"We've been talking for a while now and we think it's time to take our relationship to another level," he lied.

"You guys have been dating," Elyon said, a face full of shock. I'm more shocked than here, believe me.

"Yes, and we were planning on telling you sooner, but we were caught up in 'other' affairs," he hinted. I saw her face go a bright pink.

"Oh, Well I have to go do….some….thing, she said, but before leaving she said,  
"You know you should really redecorate your room. It looks a bit gloomy."

"I'll keep that in mind Elyon," Phobos said, and she left."Insufferable brat." I heard him mumble under his breath. Such an

I gathered up some energy from my hand and threw a nice sized fireball at the prince. Unfortunately, he deflected it pretty easily.

"Is this how you humans treat a host," he said. "I invite you into my castle, and you attacked me. You should be grateful I don't lock you up in a prison cell."

"Invited,"I roared."More like kidnapped!"

"Minor details," he said.

"Can you not find a girl that's to scared to love you so you have to find a girl in another dimension?" I quipped. I expected him to get angry, but he made a small smile.

"There are no women in this realm that deserve my affection," he said.

"So I am?" I questioned. The room felt uncomfortably warm after that question.

"Yes I am interest in you," he stated bluntly. "I thought it was obvious by my gifts."

Gifts? They were cookie cutted from a horror story. "Yeah, snakes are so romantic," I said sarcastically.

"Thank you," Phobos replied. He seemed kinda flattered. "They're Meridian pit vipers. Their venom is potent enough to wipe out an entire village." Oh great, he's going to charm me with deadly snake facts. I stared at the gory tapestry. Apparently, there are a lot of beheadings going on within the kingdom. I will bet everything that Elyon doesn't know about that.

"...and they're mating season is all year long," He had a weird tone in his voice when he said that and I turned to look at him. That was a mistake. His pupils were dilated with lust. He did look like one of those snakes. Have we gotten closer? We have. He was getting closer to me by the second. I backed up against the bed in fear until I felt my head bump against the backboard. I'm trapped! He was on top of me, holding my wrists down. His face is getting closer to mine. The room was dizzyingly hot.

"Excuse me, Lord Phobos," a voice said. We both turned to look at the unknown person. It was the maid. She looked at us, face devoid of expression. I guess that what happens when you work here for too long. Nevertheless, my head fell back in relief at this interruption. I looked up at Phobos. His eyes looked wild, like he was about to strangle her any minute now.

"How dare you disturb us, you wench!" he yelled. His bloodlust was overwhelming and I felt fearful for this maid's life. I decided to do something that I would surely regret, but would surely save this poor maid's life. I wrapped him into my arms for a passionate kiss.

His eyes widened with surprise, but he pulled me closer into him, kissing me more fervently. At least I diverted his attention from the maid. I felt his tongue wiggle into my mouth and his hands were getting a bit too close to my ass for comfort. I pulled away and saw that my 'calming down methods' were working smoothly. He looked at between half lidded eyes, licking his lips, savoring my lingering scent on his lips. My cheeks went red from shame and another feeling that I dare not question what it is. Nevertheless, he was as docile as a newborn puppy. He straightened up his face and faced the maid. "What is it?" he said, using the same sickly sweet tone he uses on Elyon.

"Miss Elyon directed me to tell your highness that dinner is ready," she said, unfazed by the display of affection.

"Tell her we will be there shortly," he said. However, I moved from under him and headed toward the door.

"May you please take me to where she is," I asked as politely as possible, but she ignored me. She looked at Phobos for some kind of direction, but he looked at her with one of his many frowns.

"I'll be there shortly," he corrected. The maid bowed to him and silently closed the door. She started to walk away, probably wanting me to follow. She didn't even thank me for saving her life, I should've let him take her.

As we were heading towards the dining room, I should've just took that time to run away, but a plan formulated inside of my head. This would be a golden opportunity to talk to Elyon and know how the castle operates. This is stupidly dangerous, but we are really stuck at a standstill with no direction to turn to and this seems better than any other plan we had, even if it's at the expense of me pushing my dignity and pride aside. I bid my one sided goodbye to the maid, and met Elyon who sitting around a long dining table surrounded by copious amounts of food. The background was a large, beautiful white palace by flowers. It was obviously done by magic, but Elyon was oblivious.

"Come and sit, Taranee," Elyon said, cheerfully. I made my way to a seat next to her.

"Want some bread?" she asked, but I declined the offer. I rather not eat the food stolen out of people's home.

"How's life treating you?" I asked.

"It's been really good," she said. "this place is really beautiful. I should show you the garden sometimes. It's one of the most amazing places I've ever seen." I felt pity for her as she talked about how she's doing in this hellhole. I wish I could tell her the truth, but she wouldn't believe me. "...so, how's everyone doing?" she said softly.

"We all miss you so much," I said. That was the first honest thing I've said all day.

"Then why haven't you guys come to visit?" she questioned. It's cause of your stupid brother! I wanted to say, but when I looked into that face full of tears, I was speechless. "It's great here, it really is, but I've been so lonely," she sniffed, wiping away her tears. "My brother is so nice but he isn't much fun." Right on cue, Phobos walked in.

"How are you ladies doing?" he said and sat across the table from me. "We're doing fine," Elyon said. He turned to look at me. He gave me this smile that gave me shivers down spine."Aren't you hungry?" he asked.

"I'm fine," I said tartly, giving him a very tight smile. He grabbed my hands, feigning concern. I felt something hard and wet on my hands. When he pulled away, I saw that a red liquid sliding down my palm. Curious, I opened my hand and saw that it was an eyeball. I held my breath to stop me from screaming and looked at him in horror, scared at where and how he got this organ, but he simply frowned my reaction and looked over at Elyon who chattering away at the renovations for the castle garden, oblivious at the situation that just occurred. I wrapped it in a napkin for solidarity sake and as evidence for later times. After a while, I finally broke down and ate some of the food they had at the table. I'm terrible at restraining myself when it comes to food. Elyon and I started to talk about Earth, under the watchful eye of Phobos, and it was until a certain subject about boys that it was time for dinner to come to a close.

"So, do you still keep in touch with Nigel?" she asked.

"Who's Nigel?" he inquired. He took to this weird tone in his voice when he said that.

"He's Taranee's ex boyfriend," she answered. "So you still talk to him?"

"Yeah, a little," I said. It never worked at between us, but we still kept in contact as good friends. But Phobos, of course, didn't react to the situation properly and I felt him getting angry. Just to be spiteful, I started to boast about how good he was, what he did with me on dates, and all this other stuff. He really got pissed off then.

"I think it's time for to go to bed," he said, his voice a deadly calm.

"Yeah, it's getting late," Elyon said, "Are you going to stay the night, Taranee?"

"Uh-" I started to say. I never factored in spending the night in my plan.

"Of course she is." Phobos interrupted. I turned around to rebut him him but he was gone. Damn him. "Let me show you the guest room," she said. I was placed in a room right next to Elyon. It looked really nice. It's something Cornelia would probably live in. Elyon stayed in the room with me, and we sat on the bed and talked for what seemed like hours. It was clearly apparent that she was lonely and hadn't had a good conversation in a long time. We were able to get real personal, the type of personal that we wouldn't have been able to get during dinner, and that's how we fell asleep, just talking.

"Please wake up," someone said. I woke up groggily, looking at the person who called me. It was the maid from before, her figure illuminated in the pitch blackness only by candlelight. I followed her in throughout the castle. It seemed especially haughty at night. When we reached our destination, she turned to face me, bowing her head in acknowledgment. That's when I noticed her wearing an eyepatch. I gasped and dugged into the gown's pocket, bringing out the wrapped organ. Her one eye widened in surprised, reaching out to grab it but hesitated, probably fearful if Phobos found out. I brought the organ closer to her until she finally took it, bowed again, and hastily walked away. Well that was an experience.

I turned away from her retreating figure to face the room. Well it's about time to swallow my pride. I took a deep breath and opened the door. I peered out and saw a winding staircase lit by candlelight. This is not what I expected that door to lead to. I traveled down the staircase, the only sounds were my feet hitting the stairs. At what seemed to be endless, I started to hear the sounds of water. At first I could only hear trickling, but as I got closer that trickle turned into a roar. I was soon met with another door that blocked my path. I opened it.

I was greeted to a wave of steam that hit my face, gigantic bathhouse. The bathhouse was a waterfall the made a olympic sized pool at the bottom. The flooring was a smooth marble and was very slippery, I knew this mostly because I almost fell trying slide on it. I was too busy admiring the bathhouse to notice the three maids that came to me. I felt one of their hands trying to unlace my dress and I jumped in shock.

"Thank you, but I can undress myself," I said as politely as possible. However, that statement didn't seem to register to the maid.

"Lord Phobos told us to treat you to one finest treatment available," the maid stated, blunty.

"I don't see what this has to do-" I started to say.

"He doesn't want you to lift a finger," the maid interrupted.

"Please, this is not necessary," I told her. I didn't want to be treated like some child who can't even bathe itself. It's really embarrassing.

"We will abide by our master's wishes," she said seriously, and by the look in her eyes she was very serious as well. She was really dedicated to this maid thing so I swallowed what little of the pride I had and allowed them to strip me of my clothing. I shivered at the cold air that hit my naked form, and they guided me to the warm water of the bathtub. I closed my eyes and leaned back, enjoying the water. I opened my eyes once I felt one of the maids undoing the ringlets that my hair was in, dousing it in the water. She pulled out a type of shampoo and massaged it into my hair, sending tingles down my spine.

The second maid I saw was undressing herself and got into the water right next to me. She had small towel coated a soapy substance and brought it to my body. She bathed me throughout. She was being very gentle making slow circles to make sure to get every crevice of my body. I was relaxed and calm, quite enjoying the sensations of being bathed plus my hair being massaged until the maid got to my more sensitive area. She really took her time with that area, making slow circles on me. Unknown sensations spread across my lower half, making my face go red. I was very relieved and a little disappointed when she seemed to be done.

"Right now, I want to make sure I have given you a thorough cleaning," she said and I nodded in compliance, confused at what she was about to do. She ducked under the water and I looked down at what was she doing until something hit me and I threw my head back. "Oh god," I gasped out loud, a wave of pleasure flowed through me as she latched her mouth onto my private part and was gently licking my clitoris. I rolled my body against her mouth as she kept on with the gentle stroking, massaging my legs to keep them open. She soon went lower to the entrance of my vagina. She circled her tongue around the opening before she thrusted her tongue inside of me. Pleasure hit me like a storm and I gripped her head for closer contact. As this was going down, the maid who was done with my hair slipped her hands down to my breasts, slowly massaging them. My muffled moans now escaped me freely under the double sensations. The first maid's tongue was exploring the inner caverns of my body, slurping up the juices that spilled out my body like it was water. The second maid teased with nipples, bringing them to a rock hard state. She popped one in her mouth, rolling them on her teeth. The waves of pleasure overwhelmed me. I couldn't take it much longer and I climaxed, bucking into the maid's mouth my juices rushing out.

The maid came up from the water, my juices coating her face. I looked at her, lazily wondering how she was able to get that much stamina to stay underwater from. She closed in on me, giving a sloppy french kiss, making me taste my own fluids.

"Our lord would want her soon," the third maid said, interrupting our kiss. The first maid gave her a scathing look and gave me one more chaste kiss on the lips.

"I hope your experience was satisfying," the first maid said and ushered me out of the water. The third maid wrapped me up in a towel and brought me out through a different door, leaving the first and second maid behind. It was a pretty small room with only a bed and table covered with oil and lotions bottles were waiting. The third maid directed me to lay upon the bed on my stomach and I waited for whatever was next. She combed my hair, tying it up in a neat bun. She took out some oil and squirted it into her hands. She slowly massaged the oils into my body starting from top down. The intoxicating aroma of these various oils made me a little light-headed and I started to fall asleep, but I had to turn over on my back for her to finish. She lightly went over my breasts and stomach, but she took her time when doing my legs, rubbing the oils in circles down and up. Each time she massaged my legs, she was a hair's length away from vagina making me feel a slight tingling sensation every time to she got close to it. Finally, she let my legs go down and I sit up, grateful that she was done with me and that there were nothing 'extra special' about what she did to me. She dressed me with red, satin robe and led up another set of staircases to another room.

A waft of jasmine hit me as I entered the room. "Welcome back, Taranee," Phobos greeted. He was laying across the bed wrapped in purple robes, his figure was illuminated by the roaring fire that was in the fireplace. I didn't notice any secret passageways when I checked out the room earlier. I heard the maid close the door behind me, leaving me in the room with him, alone.

"What did you want from me" I said. I knew exactly what he wanted, but I was to embarrassed to admit it.

"Can I talk to my lover in the confines of our chamber," he said.

"What, no!" I practically shouted. "It's because you are a crazy bastard!"

Phobos smirked. "It's a customary tradition that two lovers engage in heated insults as a sign of affection, you insufferable twit."

"Then what was with that eye from that maid. That girl didn't deserve that, and don't get me started with those maids practically molesting me."

"Those maids were performing a cleansing you. They are to have to purify you inside and out for the courtship ritual." he explained

"But that doesn't explain the maid getting her eye taking out," I cried.

"Oh that maid," he started. "She disrespected you and tried to interfere in between our courtship ritual, so I simply punished her and brought back her eye as a trophy for you."

"Oh god," I sobbed. "You're sick." I put my head in my hands and started to cried. This was just so frustrating!

Phobos got up and picked me up, bridal style and carried to the bed. I justed wanted to get out of there, but I needed to stay there to get as much info as possible. But the more I repeat that statement in my mind, the I feel that it was an excuse to something more deeper,something more strange.

I felt light kisses peppered down my neck. He moved my hands to get access to my face, kissing away the tears in my face. I think he was trying to make me feel better, and I am troubled to say that it was working. I need an aspirin.

He captured my lips in a deep kiss. My hands buried into his hands. I opened my mouth for his forceful tongue to enter; I tasted a sweet wine on his tongue as he swirled his tongue against mine. He soon moved down, trying make hickeys on my dark skin, all the while he was staring at me. I looked away, trying not to moan. He slipped off the my robes, my nipples standing out perkily.

I tried to cover myself, but was forcefully restrained with his hands. "No," he growled out. Our eyes met. His pupils were huge with arousal, and has this sort of predatory glint to them. He easily shrugged off his, standing over me, trying to get me to admire him in all his naked glory. He even an ego trip in the bedroom. Go figure.

He let go of my arms, moving them to cover my breasts with my hands. While using me hands, he slowly used my thumb to slowly caress my nipples. My moans exemplified, heat rushed to head at the strange sensation of me touching myself. His rough tongue felt like pure heat as he made his trail from my breast to my stomach to my...As soon as he got to that part, he came back up, causing me to feel twinge of disappointment, capturing me in a sloppy kiss. I felt his bare erection lightly grind up against my vagina as our tongues entwined. I moved my hands from my breasts to his head, so I could steady myself from the waves of pleasure that rolled down my spine.

The precum that leaked out of penis mixed with my my own juices, creating a sort of lube. Once he thought that it was enough, he broke our kiss to position himself to my entrance. Paranoid thoughts flashed through my mind. Will it hurt? What about protection? Getting pregnant is the last thing I want right now.

"Wa-," I started, but everything was silenced by him entering me. Pain shock me, making me dig my nails against his back. He held my hips, trying to get me accustomed to his large size. "It hurts," I cried. Tears rolled down my cheeks, but were wiped away by one of his hands He made slow, smooth circles on my back, and I soon relaxed.

He started back on a slow, steady pace, and the pain slowly gave way to pleasure. I moaned breathily, and he took it as a sign to go faster. He lifted my legs to his shoulder, deepening his thrusts. My moans became increasingly loud, creating a smug look on his face, telling me he enjoyed every sound that came out of my mouth. I clutched his back as his movements became more erratic. Euphoria washed over me, as I came with a cry. I fell back into his arms. However, Phobos was still going strong, and it wasn't till I came again that he came inside of me.

We collapsed into the bed, exhausted. As I calmed down from my high, I was filled with a sense of shame and regret. How could I do this? Sleeping with the enemy, this is a new low. Phobos looked over at me, his fingers lightly treading through my hair as soft kisses were pressed against my neck. Exhaustion took over me as I drifted off into a deep sleep.

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